D.A. Points' victory in Houston came with what can only be described as a mixed bag of equipment.

If you're a major golf equipment company, the Shell Houston Open surely left you with mixed feelings.

D.A. Points waited out a long rain delay Sunday afternoon, then grinded out a one-shot victory[2] that also earned him a spot in the Masters. In his bag was a mix of clubs from TaylorMade and Ping – but most of those clubs were several years old.

Anyone who watched the tournament on TV heard the story of how Points borrowed an old Ping Anser putter from his mother. That putter, Points said, has been in his garage since about 2005. And that's just the beginning of the story of his equipment mix.

--His driver is a TaylorMade R11S. TaylorMade still lists it as a current model, though the R1 and RBZ models are newer. And if you go to the TaylorMade site, you can buy the R11S for $100 off and the R11S TP model for $200 off.

--His 3-wood is a TaylorMade Burner, which was popular four or five years ago but is now out of production. The current model is the Burner SuperFast 2.0.

--One hybrid is a TaylorMade Rescue 11, which is a 2011 model.

--Another hybrid is a Ping G10, which has been discontinued.

--His iron set consists of Ping i5 clubs, which are also out of production.

--His wedges are Ping Tour models with Gorge grooves, which are brand new.

A couple of observations:

--First, good for Points for sticking with clubs he likes and trusts.

--Second, TaylorMade and Ping might not get a lot of marketing mileage out of Points' victory with all those older clubs. On the flip side, Points proved that these clubs, though most are several years old, are still darn good.

We all get bombarded each year with marketing claims that the newest clubs are the greatest ever made – and they probably are. But that doesn't mean their predecessors are obsolete. In fact, all the big club companies have been making excellent product for years – unlike, for instance, all the major car companies.

So while there's no denying the appeal of golf's new products, everyday golfers like you and me should feel good that our couple-of-years-old sticks are still plenty good and that we shouldn't feel pressured to upgrade until we're good and ready. So if you're truly in the market for the latest and greatest, go right ahead and buy whatever your heart desires (and make sure you get a proper clubfitting from a PGA Professional to get the most out of your new gear).